Playing musically?

[Kel]

i was wondering what does it mean to play musically and does this have anything to do with phrasing??

whats the best way to play musically and to learn to play musically

id appreaciate your answers thanks!!!

[NetherMagic]

wow I sense many posts to come for this one

Yes, phrasing is definately crucial to playing musically.  Just like in writing a story, when you're playing a piece, it gets split up into phrases (slurs, etc) paragraphs, main ideas (perhaps movements? ) themes, etc.  

Playing musically is very hard to be defined, it's just like trying to explain to a colorblind person how red looks like.  Telling them the frequency of the colour would do no good as it doesn't say anything at all about the colour, and using descriptive words won't do either.  

I consider one's musicality as one's inner sixth-sense.  Musicality is different in everyone, some might be more in-depth than others, some vary in style.  

There are some definate required attributes to playing musically, that includes:
-Well control of dynamics
-Control of tonal quality, not too harsh, not too soft, just right
-Phrasing
-Showing variety and taste with the music, for example, in Alla Turca, if you are repeating the first theme twice, it is expected that you make either the first time softer or louder than the second time to show a little difference and variety (this is not a very good example but you get my idea)
-Adding your own taste to the music rather than copying all the musical styles of the great pianists on your recordings
-Emotion of the piece expressed, for example, you would try to bring out the melancholic attribute of some of Chopin's nocturne or the agitation of Beethoven's 3rd movement of his Moonlight Sonata or the brightness of Bach's 1st movement of his Italian Concerto

That's all I can rack up right now.  There are many other things to musicality.  One suggestion is to attend more recitals and concerts.  One good way to sense musicality is to get a teacher and a student to play the same piece.  If the teacher is good, you should be able to listen out some differences in their music making.  Listen more to recordings.  However, listening to recordings doesn't mean you copy every single thing from them.  You can play it in the style of some other pianists as long as you don't play it note for note.

Btw, some drama might help too with your playing   like bouncing butts off the seat for fortissimo chords or swaying heads during legato sections    
But don't overdo it.

[eddie92099]

A valiant attempt Nethermagic!
Ed

[NetherMagic]

haha thx Ed!  

[shas]

Hey if you want to hear somthing played "non musicaly" enter it in to a computer program like sibelius and listen to it. Playing somthing musically is expressing and interpreting the piece in your own waywith fealling and eotion.
it's all about the energym, A great pianist can hold an entier audience in supence with a single not where as some may not even with inpressive runse and big kedenzas.
I think a good way to develop your musicality is to improvise ( and don't say you can't or don't know how to because every one can, it's just about leting go of the classically restraining bariers) that's why I disaprouve of classical training and think it's much helthyer to study jazz or somthing first and then go on to classical.
Anyway back to the topic. Just trye and feal what the sompocer intended when he wrote the piece and what he was fealling. Beethoven would be agood one because his music is always very emotinal.

[allchopin]

Has anyone ever heard a prefessional performance playede non-musically?  I think the worst recording of a master i have heard is Van Cliburns Rondo Alla Turca- i just dont like it at all.  Anyone?

[eddie92099]

Organ playing cannot be musical, it is merely technical and could be operated by a machine,
Ed

[Celeste]

I cannot really improve on what everyone else has said, but I do agree with them. Musicality is how you interpret the music including dynamics, phrasing (as you said), stacattos, tempo, and many other facets. But, make sure you don't go too far with musicality. Using a little rubato to make the piece go a tad faster or slower is one thing, but don't mess up the rhythm so much that the piece is unrecognizable. I'm just saying that, although musicality is VERY crucial when playing a piece, don't go overboard on it.

[jeff]

a couple of things that i think are important in playing 'musically' are a good sense of tension-and-release, and balance/timing.


posted by ed:
"Organ playing cannot be musical, it is merely technical and could be operated by a machine"

uh...what?

[eddie92099]

Sorry my opinion is slightly biased  
Ed

[randilea]

DRAMA:
get into character and convey it to the audience

For instance- Before I would play one of my jury pieces in college I found it useful to imagine that my fiance (now husband) had died.  I imagined how I would feel, what I would play like, how mournful I would sound...  It really made for a sappy melancholy performance.

The trick is, you have to practice all of your technical elements before you get to your music so that you have something to offer when you perform.  Do your homework ahead of time with you exercises so that you can really let loose when you get to your repertoire.

This is the BEST part of being a pianist in my opinion!!!

[la_carrenio2003]

The music is between-and-around the musical text. Playing musically is performing what it's written, which means doing also what's not written but implicite in the music. It has a lot to do with phrasing, actually. Musicality is a balance between knowledge and feelings's expression.

[piglet]

Listening...